Uwharrie Mountains
The Uwharrie Mountains () from the North Carolina Collection's website at the
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
.
History
The mountain range in and around the wilderness are considered to be the oldest on the
North American continent
North America is a continent in the Northern and Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea, and to the sou ...
. Evidence of early Native American settlement dates back over 12,000 years. The
Catawba Indians
The Catawba, also known as Issa, Essa or Iswä but most commonly ''Iswa'' ( Catawba: ), are a federally recognized tribe of Native Americans, known as the Catawba Indian Nation. Their current lands are in South Carolina, on the Catawba Riv ...
inhabited the area when the Europeans began exploring the region in the late 1600s. By 1760 settlement had begun in earnest, opened up by the explorers and traders along the Ocaneechi Trail.
A plantation once owned by John Watson Birkhead (b. 1858) forms the core of the wilderness. The Birkhead acquired over the years were made up of many small tenant farms. The mountain range was known locally as the Birkhead Mountains.
Evidence of early Native American and other settlers can often be found.
Recreation
All trails within the wilderness are designated hiking trails. Travel by horse or vehicle is prohibited.
Dispersed camping
In the United States, dispersed camping is camping on public land other than in designated campsites. This type of camping is most common on national forest and Bureau of Land Management land. Designated campsites often offer services to the cam ...
is allowed.
See also
*
List of U.S. Wilderness Areas
The National Wilderness Preservation System includes 806 wilderness areas protecting of federal land . They are managed by four agencies:
*National Park Service (NPS)
*United States Forest Service (USFS)
*United States Fish and Wildlife Service ...
*
Wilderness Act
The Wilderness Act of 1964 () is a federal land management statute meant to protect U.S. Wilderness Area, federal wilderness and to create a formal mechanism for designating wilderness. It was written by Howard Zahniser of The Wilderness Socie ...